Coming up to my third anniversary on July 5th prompted the following post on the ‘Positives’ thread…..

“Allie I can’t believe it’s nearly three years since we discovered this WOE but I dread to think how my health would be have been had I not discovered this WOL! I’d probably be much heavier and taking loads of pills had I carried on eating as my 2016 ‘normal’.
I think there are quite a few of us who are around three years certainly sunshine-girl, and Kristen has probably passed her third anniversary. SunnyB must be close to three too and Mixnmatch and probably many others who are posting/reading. Essie? Maybe we should start a ‘3+’ club!!
I know my resolve has weakened. I don’t eat the ‘white stuff ‘ and my blood sugars have been great, as a result , for over two years. I just wonder how much more difficult it will be as time goes on especially if I don’t have the forums to help!
Who knows!
Anyway, for the moment, we should all pat each other on the back for adopting this way of life for the last three years.”
I hope you don’t mind but I’m going to copy over your post Essie and Californiagirl and maybe others will add their inspiring anniversay stories. I think by looking back, occasionally, we are all reminded of how far we have come and where we may have been today had we not adopted this WOL!!!

Essie’s post
“My three year anniversary is August 1, Verano and allie. It still boggles my mind. I think there’s a strong chance I’d be immobile by now if I hadn’t found the BSD. My knees and feet were in so much pain all the time. I couldn’t even sleep lying down because my knees hurt when I was on my sides or stomach and my own weight suffocated me on my back. I literally slept (when there was any sleep to be had) sitting up in a chaise lounge. I shopped in the middle of the night to get the closest parking space and navigate the store, leaning against the cart for support, with as few people around as possible.

It was a shadow existence. I find I prefer the light.”

Californiagirl’s post
“I passed my 3 yr anniversary on March 1st. I found the paperback version of BSD as I passed through London Heathrow on a holiday in 2016 and bought it on the fly (I was embarrassed to buy the book because I was worried people around me would be thinking “well SHE sure needs that book!)
It literally changed my life. Before that I had been gaining and gaining and no matter what I did or how I dieted nothing was working. My old management “technique” of exercise exercise exercise didn’t have the same effect and I couldn’t exercise enough hours to get rid of the weight, or even keep from gaining more. I had started to think of myself as thick, because I was just “wide” front to back, with fat just packed in everywhere.
It is actually hard to think about it objectively as I write this — I was truly in despair.
I was a really slow adopter and it took me about two months to internalise the BSD system. I fell off the wagon over and over.
I would write down every morning how I had done the day before and if I had messed up, I would strategise how I could avoid that mistake again. I had strategies for everything! I used to practice out loud in the car ordering sparkling water so I wouldn’t default to ordering wine at a restaurant!
Over time I got better and better but I’ve never been perfect at it. But the huge fantastic news here is that YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO IT PERFECTLY FOR IT TO WORK!!
If you keep your carbs very low (I aimed for 20 grams/day and ended up around 30 per day) and keep at it, even imperfectly, it will work.
Today I am still low carb and I have lost the desire for sugar and junk. I do have an occasional beer after a long hike and I eat to fullness — but the weight stays off as long as I avoid the “carbage”.
I’m not skinny but I’m strong and healthy and I am (usually) full of energy.
Anyone who is struggling, don’t give up. Get a copy of Gary Taubes book, “Why We Get Fat and What To Do About It” and really internalise WHY carbohydrate matters. That book is my best recommendation to go with the BSD. Together they unlock the secret — and the secret is that your beautiful body is designed to work brilliantly — you just get need to give your body the right food to help it get there.”

Hi guys, I may be taking this too literally, but
I would have put on long trousers to hide how bloated my legs were, today I am in shorts. Still lots of wobbly areas on my legs, but its sort of fun to watch how they change shape as I clench the different muscles.
I would have been looking at articles in the Sunday paper about places to visit and thinking that I could never manage that. I couldn’t walk that far to enjoy that place. And all the things I would have liked to do with my life but now will never get the chance.
I would be looking out of the window wishing I had the energy to make the most of the sunshine and the strength to do some of the never ending list of outside chores before heading down the shops to refill the fridge and worktop with carb high food to give myself something to look forward to.
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Today I will be grabbing a bottle of soda water, laughing about the empty fridge, and restacking the hay in the hay barn, and having a good old sort out of the old stables to set up them up as a workshop space.

JGwen you are definitely not taking this too literally! I find ‘what would have been’ stories really inspiring, even more so than success stories for some bizarre reason.

Hello everyone,
I’m a 3yr BSDer, too. My anniversary was in January.
I had a ticking off from the nurse at my GP surgery when I had a check-up in late 2015 – I’m not T2 but my blood sugars had started to rise. I didn’t fancy any of the options in the leaflets she sent me (Slimming World, Weight Watchers, etc) but I eventually found the BSD and figured that as I’d had some success many years earlier with a low carb/high protein diet it was worth a punt. I was 12.5stone and felt I was lumbering about like a hippo, not feeling great, and my size 16 trousers were at bursting point so I guess that the trousers would have ripped at some point if I hadn’t done anything about it! And I would have continued to have felt worse, and felt even blobbier than I did, and probably have ended up T2. And I doubt I would have been able to cope with my job – losing weight certainly helped with energy levels. Now that I’ve left that job I can focus my energy of stuff I want to do.

I managed to lose just over 2.5stone during 2016/17. However, I found it difficult to remain below 10st and the weight has crept back up a bit (old habits returned, and I never really lost my taste for some sugary things – Magnum ice creams…). Currently I’m aiming to keep below 11st and working to get back to below 10.5st. When it comes to meals, boredom is a problem for me (I’ve tended to slip into a rut) so I’m revisiting some of the recipes that I used in 2016 (and which fell by the wayside) and investigating new ones to reinvigorate my eating habits this year.

Suffice to say I have no intention of going back to 12.5st again.

Good luck everyone with your continued efforts.
Rose

I am a nearly 3 year BSDer, June 23rd to be exact. Where would I be without it. Still crying over finger pricks of 190 and trying to reduce it with more and more insulin. Although I have not managed to get off insulin and some meds I have very much reduced everything and have a BG running at around 6 HbA1c. Reduced cholesterol, triglycerides and BP. Without this I would probably be on double the meds, lost the feeling in my feet (it had happened but I got it back) and be on a slippery slope to a very poor quality of life. Thanks to Dr Mosley I am so happy to be where I am with this plan.

I have just re-read this thread and feel bad for not putting into practice the things that I know will keep me healthy. Thank you for the reminder that if we revert to our old ways we will get back our ‘old selves’.
Onwards towards even better health and vitality!

I started 1st January last year. Without making this change I’d definitely be heavier and less healthy. That’s a change I hoped for and expected if I could make it work. What I hadn’t realised was how much better I’d feel – more energetic, positive and happier. A lot of that is because I feel much more in control of my life, rather than being controlled by food cravings.